Aftermath
by faeriequeen1313
Summary: Post-The Last Guardian so SPOILERS! Now that he has reviewed his past, Artemis Fowl the Second must make a choice. A series of short one shots that make a whole story. Slight Artemis/Holly at the end. COMPLETE!
1. Introductions

**A/N: This is essentially how I thought The Last Guardian should have ended. It's mostly a series of one shot chapters that sort of string together into a cohesive narrative. This is also my first fan-fiction published on the internets so hooray! I'm very excited to see my fan-fiction writing on the internet after so many years of writing it on little scraps of paper floating around my room, so I hope this thing goes successfully, but more importantly, I hope you enjoy the fic! :)**

**Universe: Artemis Fowl- post The Last Guardian so spoilers ahead.**

**Ships: some Artemis/Holly at the end.**

**Description: Now that he has reviewed his past, Artemis must make a choice.**

**Disclaimer: Owning characters, events, etc. as well as making money off of it are what Eoin Colfer and the folks at Disney Hyperion do, not what I do. I own nothing.**

**Aftermath**

Part 1 Introductions

The soldier, the inventor, and the storyteller escort the new born teenage boy into the manor before the inhabitants are able to wake up.

They tread carefully through a childhood home that is foreign to him, and bring him to his supposed bedroom, where they dress him in comfortable clothes that keep his body warm. They introduce themselves to him as friends from the past, but he can not quite place this "past" in his mind. The concept that he has been someone before the moment when he smelled roses is confusing him, but he understands the concept of "roses" without anyone telling him, so he's not yet willing to rule out the possibility of another life.

The tall man in the dark suit introduces himself as "Butler." Butler assures the boy that despite his size, he is there to protect him, so that he may remain safe, and have a better future.

The one with four legs and the face of a man says his name is "Foaly." He tells the boy all about the marvelous inventions and gizmos he's created and this piques the boy's interest for a moment. He is beginning to remember some of them and says so to the four legged man. Mechanical dragonflies and flying cars. Watches that tell more than the time and backpacks with wings fitted into them. Foaly only admits creating a few of the inventions, but he will not say who made the other ones.

Finally, the smaller woman with red hair and tan skin who told him of a boy searching for a book in Ho Chi Minh City introduces herself as "Holly." The boy asks what her purpose is and she replies that for now, "It's simply to help you remember who you were- or are."

The boy nods and yawns and the four legged man named Foaly tells him that he needs rest and that he should go to sleep.

The three help the boy into a bed which is soft and warm and before he closes his eyes, the boy looks up at the three figures staring over at him and gives a gentle smile that feels unfamiliar to his face.  
"I am so happy to have friends like you," he sighs before drifting off to sleep.


	2. Stories

The next three days the friends stay in the room. The suite is big enough to provide all accommodations required for the stay. Butler sneaks food from the kitchen and Holly tells the boy stories about who he used to be, or quite possibly who he still is.

Artemis listens intently as the elf weaves her tale. Occasionally Butler or Foaly will chime in and add their take on an occurrence or event, but for the most part it is Holly who connects the boy to his past.

For three days they sit in that room telling stories. The four legged man leaves on the morning of the second day. He has a pregnant wife to attend to at home. Artemis understands.

In between Holly's stories of their adventures, Butler tells Artemis of his childhood in the Irish manor, inventing things and coming up with new theories for science journals at such young ages. He tells him of his family and the other people he knows.

Artemis asks if he had any other friends besides the ones mentioned in Holly's stories. Butler is frank and shakes his head.

Holly finishes her stories on the third night, ending with the roses on the hill, which is the first truly vivid memory Artemis has. Other memories are reforming and surfacing in his mind, of other people, places, and things, but none so set in reality as the smell of the roses.

Three days, just like in a fairy tale.

And when Holly draws her last breath and declares her stories done, Artemis only nods, with out asking any questions, and sits back in the leather chair of his study's desk.

"Thank you, Holly." He states simply. Holly knows he is neither confirming nor denying this past. He is simply taking it in.


	3. Meeting the Family

**A/N: Sorry for the wait, here's the next part. People were wondering about Artemis' parents. Here is your answer. The whole story is written out. Hopefully it will all be posted soon enough.**

Disclaimer: Artemis and the gang belong to Eoin Colfer and the folks at Hyperion Disney. I only wrote this fan-fiction for fun, not money.

The next day Artemis is ready to meet his parents again. He dresses in a tailored suit that is reasonably familiar to him. During the small trek through the mansion, Artemis starts to lead his two friends to the dining room where his parents and two brothers, now five years old, are having a quiet breakfast.

Butler enters the room first. A man of few words, he apologizes for the grief the family may have gone through, and simply states that there is someone ready to meet then.

Artemis enters the room and when Holly walks through the doorway only a second later, she sees Angeline Fowl crying on her eldest son's shoulder as Artemis Fowl the First, Myles and Beckett stare in disbelief from their seats. This is not the first time Artemis Fowl the Second has been dead to his family for a length of time. If his mother could have her way it would be the last.


	4. Senses

**A/N: This should be the second to last chapter. Thank you all for your lovely reviews! They are all greatly appreciated!**

**Obligatory disclaimer: I own nothing, Eoin Colfer and Hyperion Disney do, etc. etc. Enjoy the fic!**

Time slides together after this. Artemis regains his memories slowly and steadily. He walks around the manor grounds, a place once a sight of battles for hoarded wealth now a community garden. Sights and sounds are familiar now. Smells and tastes bring back even more memories. Juliet, Butler's sister, has perfume that smells like walking past the woman's changing room of the dojo and the panicked experienced of realizing that the battery of your solar powered aeroplane has been stolen. One day in the gardens a squat hairy man who smells of underground caverns, explosions, and dead rabbits came out of a hole in the ground.

"I know you," said Artemis, "Your name is Mulch Diggums."

"Sure is kid," says Mulch, "If anyone asks, the crops from that field over there were gone to begin with."

Though she's been offered a bed in one of the manor's numerous guest bedrooms, Holly insists on sleeping on the couch in Artemis' office until Artemis assures her that he can take care of himself.

She still visits every few days or so.


	5. Average

**A/N: I am sooo sorry for that wait! I've been settling into college and everything's been so busy, but anyway, here it is, the conclusion to Aftermath. Enjoy!**

**As always, Eoin Colfer and the folks at Hyperion Disney own these characters, I only write fan-fiction for the fun of it not for the money of it.**

One day, Artemis Fowl the Second wakes up in his four poster bed and fully understands where his life has taken him. Once upon a time a boy with no friends trying desperately to hold an already irreparable family together decided to heed the advice of his older self and kidnap a fairy for its gold.

Artemis knows who he was and who he has been and now as he tries to look at a future in a new world free of doubts and fears, he must decide who he must be. He had hunted the silky sifaka lemur, stolen and resold fairy technology on the black market, and kidnapped a fairy police woman for gold. But he had also stopped a manic pixie from ruling the world on multiple occasions, donated to charity, and saved the lives of those who had devoted their own lives to saving him. As it turned out the only treasure he ever found were the lasting relationships he made during each adventure. In another life Artemis would never except such a hokey metaphor as that. In possibly even another life he could. Now at the crossroads he must choose which life to take.

Outside his bedroom window is a view of a rural Irish landscape, now dotted with little farms and gardens. A few feet away Butler is walking to the dojo with Juliet- the twins in tow, ready for their lessons- and a faint glimmer of light is beginning to appear a few feet behind them. Only Beckett smiles and waves at the shifting lights.

Artemis closes his curtains and gets dressed so that when his friend comes in to his study and asks, "Are you sure you're up to parr with everything today, Mud Boy?" he will reply in the affirmative and thank her again for everything he has done for him. Then she will look at him strangely and ask what's up and he will state that he's changed. Holly will shrug and change the subject (although internally she will think it's pretty obvious that the boy has changed). And then they'll talk for a while- she'll gripe about work at the Lower Elements Police and he'll mention some fantastic invention he's trying to patent. If he's feeling up to it he will kiss her on the cheek. But that may be getting ahead of himself. He still needs to put his trousers on this morning.

Artemis Fowl the Second was once an extraordinary person who would never settle for anything even resembling "average". He still is an extraordinary person, but these days he is more than happy to settle for average than ever before.


End file.
